What is a Notary Public?

A Notary Public is a qualified lawyer – a member of the third and oldest branch of the legal profession in the United Kingdom. He is appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury and is subject to regulation by the Court of Faculties.

What services does a Notary Public provide?

A notary's main functions are to administer oaths and affirmations, take affidavits and statutory declarations, witness and authenticate the execution of certain classes of documents, take acknowledgments of deeds and other conveyances, provide notice of foreign drafts, provide exemplifications and notarial copies, and perform certain other official acts depending on the jurisdiction. Any such act is known as a notarisation.

What is the difference between a Notary and a solicitor?

Notaries form a small, highly specialised branch of the legal profession, whose area of specialisation is the preparation and certification of documents so that they may be used effectively abroad.

Solicitors form by far the largest part of the legal profession. They provide advice and representation to their clients on a wide variety of legal issues, usually within the legal framework of their country of residence.

One important difference between a Notary and a solicitor is that whereas a solicitor's primary duty is to his client, the Notary's primary duty is to the transaction and the authenticity of the documents. As Notary Public's are recognised worldwide, they have to maintain absolute integrity and impartiality to maintain the standing of the Notarial profession.

What is Legalisation or Apostille?

Many countries also require notarised documents to be legalised. Legalisation is a double check to make sure that the notaries' signature is genuine and recognised by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Documents may also be checked by foreign embassies to make sure that the Notary's signature matches the one on their records. The requirement for this will depend on the foreign country involved. Once the authenticity of the signature is confirmed a certificate is attached, called an "Apostille".

How long will my appointment take?

If the document is straightforward, already prepared and in the correct form the notary is likely to need to see you for a minimum of 20-30 minutes and complete it within an hour. Obviously it takes longer if the document is not straightforward or he has to draw up the document or make a proper copy.

Many countries want documents to be countersigned by their London
Embassies (legalisation) and this will take several days unless you want to
take them to the Embassy in person and wait in line. The fees and procedures for this vary widely but the notary should be able to give you a reasonably accurate idea of the time and the cost.

What identification does a Notary Public require?

Passport or other personal identification document (e.g. driving licence) pertaining to the officer of the company appearing before the Notary Public plus a recent item proving their address. Contact me if in doubt.

Companies House incorporation documents (the Notary Public will either ask for these or obtain these herself from Companies House online).

What does it cost?

There are no set charges although The Notaries Society reminds its members that they should charge a proper fee which is appropriate for the level of service offered and which will enable them to meet the cost of acting properly and in accordance with the Rules made by the Faculty Office and with the demands of good professional practice.

For most matters the Notary Public should be able to tell you their fee in advance. For more complex matters they will tell you how the fee will be assessed – usually based on how long he will have to work on your matter. There may be fees to pay to third parties, such as the Foreign Office or an Embassy.